


Arcadia

by Ari Joria (Ari_Alleyn)



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4, Persona Q: Shadow of the Labyrinth, Persona Series
Genre: F/F, F/M, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-25
Updated: 2016-01-28
Packaged: 2018-05-09 09:32:15
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 10,759
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5534858
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ari_Alleyn/pseuds/Ari%20Joria
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It is just possible that love and loyalty might be enough to save the world, even in the light of differences of opinion, of motivation, of method and of purpose between brand new friends.<br/>The following is, at it's core, the story of Persona Q from the perspective of Makoto Yuki, the female protagonist of Persona 3 Portable.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

 

 **Author's Note:** Well, I haven't finished a story in lord knows how long, and I'm probably starting to get almost as frustrated by that as you are. Subsequently, I'm playing a game with myself. I have to write and post each chapter as I finish each section of the game, so hopefully that will keep me on task enough to actually finish the damn thing and not lose what's left of my beloved readers (not that I'd blame any of you one bit if you weren't actually there anymore. Sing out if you ARE there, pretty please.)

I seem to be completely lost when it comes to my Persona fanfiction. For over a year now, I haven't been able to interest myself in sticking with any new storylines. I haven't been able to come up with anything fresh, and it's a mess.

Subsequently, I've decided to go back to the one game I never really finished, and to write a storyline based around that game. Persona Q was a nightmare for me to play, and I dropped it before I learned the end. This time not only am I forcing myself to play through the whole thing, I'm writing the story in the process of playing it. That opens up all kinds of new ideas for future storylines based upon a fresh game that I'd never experienced in full before. I hope it yields all sorts of things that you have fun reading!Lord knows I need a fresh writing start, and I don't just mean a new story; I mean a new perspective.

We're looking at this story from the point of view of the female protagonist from Persona 3, typically referenced as "Minako Arisato." In Q, though, there aren't enough available spaces to spell out both of those names, so we're calling her "Makoto Yuki," to reflect the new direction that the franchise has taken in recent years. (For anyone who doesn't know, that's the name that was assigned to the main character in the relatively recent Persona 3 movie.)

Oh, and you may have noticed that my pen name has changed. I'm actually using my real name, for once. I'm getting married in a few months, so I've decided to use my future husband's name for literary purposes, since it's prettier and less dorky than mine. I won't actually be changing my legal name, so this'll give me some anonymity as well, in case someone from one of my various workplaces stumbles upon this story…or the others.

Anyway, I digress disgracefully.

Same old Ari, different surname. Thanks for taking the time to read, and I hope we can have some fun with this, at long last.

Sincerely and enthusiastically,

Ari (Moriarty) Joria

* * *

**Arcadia**

By Ari Joria

* * *

**Prologue**

_Something,_ thought Makoto, _doesn't feel right…but I can't quite put my finger on what it is._

She was standing outside the entrance to the Velvet Room, frowning at the familiar, glowing blue door and listening to the sounds of her friends chatting amongst themselves only a few feet away as they waited for her by the entrance to Tartarus.

It had only been a few hours, really, since she'd woken up from what Junpei kept jokingly and pretty tastelessly referring to as a coma. He also said she'd been looking like a zombie ever since she'd dragged herself downstairs again to meet the others for the first time in two days. There had been a typhoon, apparently, and not only had the culture festival gotten cancelled, but there had been a lot of damage to the surrounding area.. Not even Koromaru felt much like going out for a walk. They'd ultimately and somewhat reluctantly decided to go head to Tartarus that night, mostly because this might have been the first and maybe the last time for weeks when every single SEES member would be very unlikely to have any other pressing plans.

 _Maybe that's all it is,_ she told herself. _Maybe I'm just still not feeling up to my usual one hundred percent. Maybe that's where this weird, unsettling feeling is coming from._

Somehow, that didn't really seem like a satisfactory answer.

Shaking her head and trying to shove unpleasant, uncertain thoughts out of her mind, Makoto stifled a yawn, swallowed her irritation with herself and pushed open the Velvet Room door.

"Hi, Theo," she began. "I'm sorry I haven't-!"

Theo, however, wasn't there.

Makoto stopped talking mid-sentence and stared at the trim, bright-eyed blond woman in Velvet Room uniform who was standing inexplicably by Igor's empty chair, in Theodore's usual place.

"Uh," mumbled Makoto. "Wait, who-?"

"Welcome," chirped the blond woman, smiling in that same, very slightly unsettling way that Theo always did, "to the Velvet Room. This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter. Although my master is away at present, I am nevertheless delighted to…"

Now, it was the woman's turn to trail off, to frown, and to peer more closely at Makoto.

"You," she announced, "are not my guest, are you? Oh dear…what on earth can this mean?"

"You," retorted Makoto, "aren't my Theo, either. Who are you, and what are you doing here? Where's Igor?"

"Theo?" The woman bit her lip, then slowly nodded once and began to smile again. "Why would you be asking about Theo, I wonder? Ah, I see…yes, I understand now. You must be…Theodore's guest. You, then, are the other Makoto."

 _The 'other' Makoto?_ Makoto frowned. _Well, I guess I shouldn't be too surprised that the Velvet Room sometimes has other visitors. Wait, isn't it a little weird, though, that out of all the potential 'guests' in the world, two of the probably very few people who end up having fantastic powers of psychological combat both have the exact same name? Seriously, what are the odds?_

"Fascinating," exclaimed the woman delightedly. "This is truly an unexpected pleasure! Not only are you a traveler from another spacetime entirely, but a woman! Or…are you, in fact, the same as my guest? After all, you don't look very much like him, do you? Your hair, for one thing, is far too brown, and your eyes…such beautiful blood-red eyes. He too, of course, has quite remarkable eyes, but nothing like yours. Could I, perhaps, have made a mistake? Might you be someone else entirely? No, no, surely that's impossible, you MUST be him….or rather, her. Yes, you must be…you."

"Uh," managed Makoto, dumbfounded.

"Allow me," began the woman serenely, now obviously completely at ease with the situation, "to introduce myself. My name is Elizabeth, and I, too, am a resident of this Velvet Room. As a matter of fact, I am Theodore's older sister, and if you are who I think you must be then I've heard a great deal of wonderful things about you already from my doting little brother. You are welcome here, Makoto, in this Velvet Room."

"Thank you," mumbled Makoto, not entirely sure what else to say.

"My master," continued Elizabeth," is away at the moment, and perhaps that is the very reason for this disturbance…no, for this collision between our universes."

She sounded entirely too excited to be totally sane. Makoto raised an eyebrow.

"Or perhaps," murmured Elizabeth intensely, more to herself than to Makoto at this point, "there is some deeper meaning to our meeting. Only time will tell, I suppose. And now, of course, I would be happy to assist you with anything that you may require. True, I have neither the skill nor the experience of my master when it comes to Persona fusion, but I have some little talent for it and I would LOVE to make an experiment with you. Which Persona would you like today, hmm? Oh, perhaps an Ares? Yes, that would be perfect; Ares, the strong, powerful, manly god of war! Destructive and yet beautiful even in the midst of his controlled chaos! How a little thrill shoots down my spine when I have the privilege of watching him fight! What do you say, would you care for an Ares? I would be delighted to create one for you. Just step over here and allow me to-!"

"Elizabeth," murmured Theodore in that quiet way of his, stepping suddenly out of the blue gloom just behind his sister. "What has our master told you about attempting to influence the decisions of our guests? You're quite lucky here's not here now to observe such a thing."

Elizabeth deflated ever so slightly, and let out a long-suffering sigh.

"You're no fun at all," she sighed.

"Theo!" Relieved, Makoto hurried towards him. "There you are! I was, um…wait, what exactly is going on here? You never told me you had an older sister."

"Makoto?" Theodore looked momentarily very surprised, then cleared his throat politely, coughed, and gave her a smile, although it didn't look quite as calm and composed as usual, this time. "Ah yes…I'm so glad you've had the pleasure. As a matter of fact, I have two older sisters."

"Indeed," agreed Elizabeth, nodding at him.

Makoto gave Theo a rueful sort of look.

"Oof," she said sympathetically. "That must be hard, I mean, growing up in a house full of women. Sometimes, even just the girls at school are a little too much for me."

Theo looked puzzled.

"Y-yes," he said slowly, "indeed, and yet…are not you yourself a 'girl' as you put it?"

" I've never really gotten the whole femininity thing, you know?" Makoto shrugged. "And sometimes when they get together, all that the girliest ladies can ever seem to do is gang up and pick on the poor guys. Oh, not that they're all bad, though, and don't you ever let anybody tell you that girls aren't just as powerful as boys are. I think my friend Junpei used to think he'd get the upper hand, you know, just because he's a guy, but I can kick his ass at pretty much anything; in Tartarus or in front of the Playstation and gender be damned."

Makoto grinned, then took a quick look at the startled expression on Theo's face and the amused, pleased look on Elizabeth's, and realized that maybe she'd gotten just a little carried away.

"Uh, an-anyway," she stammered, trying to bring herself back to the point at hand, "I know how tough it can be to grow up with girls. We can be tough to take in large doses."

Theodore's smile reappeared, and he gave her a little bow.

"I am so glad," he murmured, with feeling, "that there is someone else in this world who so truly understands my struggle."

They both turned their attention back to Elizabeth, but for some reason Elizabeth didn't seem to be amused anymore. In fact, she looked startled and a little confused.

"Theo," she began slowly, uncertainly, "do you…is it possible that we have had this conversation at some point in the past? Once before, I'm certain that we shared this very same exchange, except…no, no, I'm quite sure that I am right. It was on the night of a terrible typhoon…a typhoon that had already considerably damaged both the surrounding city and its livelihood. Storms are like that, you know…they shake things up. Everything changes in the midst of a storm."

Elizabeth gave Theodore a significant look, and he nodded as though he understood.

Makoto, however, was completely at a loss.

"There hasn't been another typhoon since I moved to the island," she informed them. "This is the first one I've had to deal with here, so…"

"Yes," murmured Elizabeth. "Yes, I know."

 _But,_ thought Makoto, starting to get a little annoyed, _you just said-!_

"On the last time we all met here," Elizabeth was saying, apparently completely ignoring the face Makoto was making, "there was someone else as well, was there not? You met someone in this room…or perhaps that was at another time, but in the very same place. It's difficult for me to either remember or explain…but I'm sure you have the answer. Tell me, honored guest, do you remember the name of the man you met in this Velvet Room? Could you tell me, please?"

Suddenly, Elizabeth and Theodore were both watching Makoto with extremely shrewd, piercingly expectant looks in their sharp bright eyes, and for the first time, Makoto really noticed the stark family resemblance between them.

"I…no, of course not," she began hotly. "I've already told you, there's never been another typhoon like this one. How could I possibly…?"

Then, suddenly and impossibly, too slowly, she did sort of remember.

There was a voice in the back of Makoto's mind that hadn't been there before; one she knew she shouldn't recognize and yet that warmed her heart when she heard it like the voice of an old friend she'd missed for a long, long time. It was a man's voice, cool, collected, mature and soft-spoken, a little bit like Shinjiro's honestly, only without that biting undertone of irritation that always managed to seep its way into his.

"We'll meet again," he said quietly, and she could almost picture what must have been his smile. "We'll meet again…someday."

"Wait," she whispered aloud as the memory faded away again, leaving her confused and now feeling inexplicably just a bit lonely.

 _Souji,_ she realized. _Souji Seta. That's the name…the name that Elizabeth wanted._

Looking up into Theodore's questioning eyes, Makoto opened her mouth to ask a question, or maybe more like a hundred questions that she now desperately needed to know the answers to.

Before she had the chance, however, the world around her lurched horribly, and as she scrambled to try and get her balance, clutching at the arm of Igor's nearby chair, the Velvet Room was unexpectedly filled with familiar faces.

"Wh-whoa," shouted Junpei, "what the hell is this place?"

"It's…so blue," mumbled Fuuka. "Oh my."

"Arf," agreed Koromaru, inching a little closer to Fuuka and looking wary.

"Makoto?" Yukari was staring at her. "Wait, you're here? Oh…oh, I get it. This is-!"

"Yeah," agreed Akihiko, nodding to himself. "So this is the place you've telling us about, huh? Nice! I'm kinda glad to see that it really exists."

Mitsuru raised an eyebrow at him. "You're not telling me that you've been doubting our leader…have you, Akihiko?"

"Huh? Me? Well…" Akihiko rubbed uncomfortably at the back of his neck.

"You gotta admit," muttered Shinjiro, "It was all kinda hard to believe. A special place that only she can magically see? Gimme a break."

 _Jeez,_ thought Makoto, making a face at him. _Have a little faith, guys!_

"Still," observed Ken, "uh, I mean, it's obviously real, right? Is this really it?"

"I am having some difficulty getting any readings on our present location," murmured Aigis. "My sensors seem to be…malfunctioning? Perhaps I require more maintenance."

 _Well,_ thought Makoto, _that's probably because of the fact that…what is it that Theo always says? 'This place exists between dream and reality, mind and matter.' It's not 'real' per se, at least not real enough for your sensors to do any good, Aigis. Sorry!_

"Oh dear." Theodore's eyes had gone very wide, and he was gazing around with fascination at all of Makoto's friends. "We have a remarkable number of new guests. Sister, what could this possibly mean?"

"I have absolutely no idea," returned Elizabeth happily. "As far as I am aware, this sort of thing is quite unprecedented in the history of the Velvet Room. If only our master were here…I'm sure he'd be equally delighted to see so much unfolding and so many new and valued guests. Oh, but we've forgotten our manners, Theo. Please, allow us to introduce ourselves. My name is Elizabeth, and this is my younger brother, Theodore. Makoto here is our honored guest."

"Wait…sister, OUR honored guest?" Theodore looked a little bit put-out. "Makoto has, always and from the very beginning been MY Velvet Room guest... You have one of your own, do you not?"

"That is true," agreed Elizabeth calmly, "but I have a suspicion that your guest, Makoto, and my guest, Makoto, are in one sense at least exactly the same person…even if they do come from some very different worlds."

Makoto had no idea what to make of that comment, but luckily for her she didn't have to spend much time thinking about it. Junpei had sidled over to her while Elizabeth was talking.

"Uh, hey, man," he muttered, giving her a little clap on the shoulder while Elizabeth went on arguing with Theodore. "Just so you know, I never doubted you for a second, okay? I mean, it's not that I didn't BELIEVE you were telling us the truth about the whole 'Velvet Room' and 'weird blue people' thing, or anything, it's just that I kinda had a hard time wrapping my head around it. Kinda hard to imagine, you know?"

"I know," agreed Makoto, grinning at him. "Don't worry about it. After all, you're not exactly the most imaginative guy out there. I figure anything that stretches the brain this much would probably end up giving you a hard time."

Junpei winced.

"Ouch," he mumbled. "Okay, okay, maybe I deserved that, but-!"

Makoto laughed and gave him a little nudge in the ribs.

"No," she admitted. "No, you didn't. Sorry. Anyway, forget it; I'm not mad or anything."

Junpei gave her a rueful smile in return, and she was just about to return her attention to what was rapidly turning into a dull roar of anxious conversation between her teammates when the Velvet Room shuddered and then lurched aggressively a second time.

"Um," muttered Yukari, looking nervous. "Wait, is thing…an elevator? I'm not so big on heights, so if it's all the same to you guys-!"

"Oh, don't worry, Yukari," Makoto assured her friend, "it's not going anywhere…or rather, it's never going to GET anywhere. I think the Velvet Room's been pretty much constantly moving since the first day I found it, and not once has it ever acted like those horrible roller coaster-type rides where you get all the way to the top, and then you stop for a moment and all of a sudden-!"

"There is," interrupted Elizabeth innocently, "certainly a first time for everything, don't you think?"

"Oh dear," sighed Theodore.

Minako's heart sank.

At the exact same moment, the elevator also sank, plummeting downwards at a speed that even Yukari probably hadn't anticipated in her worst acrophobic nightmares.

Yukari screamed. Koromaru wrapped himself around Ken's legs, effectively knocking the boy over. Mitsuru and Akihiko both looked alarmed but managed to stay upright as Fuuka sat down hard, apparently anticipating a fall. Theodore and Elizabeth clutched at each other while Junpei threw himself into Igor's abandoned chair. Only Aigis appeared totally unruffled by the movement of the elevator.

"I got you," muttered Shinjiro from behind Makoto, steadying her with a hand on her shoulder.

"Thanks," whispered Makoto. Shinjiro just grunted in response, as the elevator thudded, finally, against the bottom of…what?

Then, for what felt like several very long moments, there was a nervous, hushed silence in the broken elevator.

"Elizabeth," sighed Theodore, "you must learn to be more careful what you say…"

Elizabeth just giggled.

* * *

**Author's End Note:**

Obvoiusly this story will follow, to a great extent, the storyline of Persona Q. The most significant difference here is that this story takes place in the timeline (or in the separate "spacetime" as Theodore likes to put it) of P3's female protagonist. She has her own P3 storyline, so as far as I'm concerned she HAS to have a Persona Q storyline as well, right? Shame we never got to see it in the game!

You'll notice that I am not using the exact dialogue from the game in this fic. I've decided that since this is an entirely separate timeline, it should probably have original and separate dialogue as well. Makes it more of it's own separate piece, you know what I mean?


	2. Chapter One

**Author's Note:** I know, it's been a while. I haven't played any video games in a couple of weeks. You see, I directed this incredible production of Shakespeare's "Henry IV, Part One." It's really very good, even though I'm the one saying it. The actors are doing such an incredible job.

Tonight was going to be opening night, and it's only supposed to run for one weekend.

Unfortunately, due to Snowmaggedon2: Return of the Snowpocalypse, it looks like I'm probably going to have to cancel it…all that hard work from so many people, right down the tubes. Such a waste.

Was I here on this site during the first Snowmaggedon? Can't remember. Might have been. Do you know, I turned 28 last week? I am…old.

I'm also disheartened and disappointed, but at least, for the first time in weeks, I have time to write...so I will.

Outside, the snow continues to fall, and fall, and fall, and fall…

* * *

**Chapter One:**

As the others held their heads and gazed confusedly around, Makoto shook herself and headed for the door.

"Come on," she said. "Let's see what's going on out there."

"Do you think this disturbance might have been caused by the shadows?" Mitsuru, already halfway to Makoto's side, looked doubtful and wary. "It's certainly rare for them to appear outside Tartarus when it's not a full moon, but it has happened."

She frowned to herself as Makoto pushed the Velvet Room door open, revealing the world outside.

"Whoa," muttered Junpei in the hushed silence that followed. "We're…hey, man, I'm not so sure we're in Tartarus anymore."

"There's no place like home," sighed Yukari. Junpei turned and grinned at her, but she didn't seem to notice.

Makoto returned her attention to the noisy, colorful scene just outside the door. There were people; students all over the place, dressed in some kind of unfamiliar, slightly old-fashioned school uniforms with the white stitches showing against dark-colored fabric. They all looked pretty happy, too, and were certainly very loud, running back and forth inbetween what looked like home-made festival booths and chattering at each other in enthusiastic but indecipherable voices.

"The hell…?" Shinjiro glared.

"Um…w-where are we?" Ken slunk a little closer to Koromaru's side, and Koromaru barked twice at a girl walking by who was carrying something that certainly smelled enough like takoyaki.

"It might be a shadow trap," hissed Mitsuru. "Stay on your guard, everyone."

"Smells too good to be a trap," retorted Junpei, his mouth watering a little bit.

"Ew," said Yukari. "Junpei, close your mouth!"

"It…it looks like a culture festival," suggested Fuuka uncertainly. "I mean, look at all the different sweets!"

Theodore and Elizabeth's eyes all immediately lit up, and they turned to each other.

"A culture festival," whispered Elizabeth ecstatically, sighing with delicious anticipation. "The epitome…no, the culmination of the student experience. Thousands of booths, each intricately and lovingly hand-crafted with the intent of demonstrating the finest of local art and culture." She grabbed Theodore's hands. "The most mouth-watering aromas and the most fascinating sights and sounds…displays, performances, experiences…! And, if we are so lucky, there may be…just maybe, the most harrowing and dangerous of all human trials! Could it be? Could we be so fortunate?"

"The most dangerous?" Theodore looked half-horrified, half-enthralled as he gazed into Elizabeth's eyes, clutching her hands tightly in his. "What…what ever could you mean, sister? What is this 'most harrowing' of human trials?"

Elizabeth glanced around at the others, smiled craftily, and then leaned slowly in to whisper very loudly at her brother. "It is called," she hissed, "the 'group date café!'"

"Oh!" Theodore recoiled, his eyes wide in alarm, and then he repeated the words very slowly, savoring each one. "The…group date café? Surely you don't mean…?"

"What are they even talking about?" Ken frowned. "What's a group date café?"

"Beats me," muttered Shinjiro, shrugging.

"Oh, you don't know?" That familiar, mischievous gleam came into Junpei's eyes. "Well, then, Ken-kun, leave it to Junpei-senpai to educate you in the ways of us adults. You see, a group date café is-!"

"N-nothing you need to worry about," interjected Yukari hastily, grabbing Junpei by the arm and twisting a little.

"YOWCH!" Junpei winced and pulled his arm away. "Hey, come on, what the hell, Yuka-tan? The kid has a right to know!"

"Uh…we'll tell you when you're older, Ken-kun," mumbled Yukari apologetically.

Ken looked confused and very disappointed.

"Forget it," suggested Akihiko, giving Ken a friendly clap on the shoulder. "It's stupid anyway. Hey, how about we go check out the festival? If it's a shadow trick after all, then there's bound to be some enemies waiting just around the corner. Better we find them before they find us, right?"

"I think that is an absolutely wonderful idea," chimed in Elizabeth, nodding encouragingly. "After all, the Velvet Room is inseparable from its guest's fate, and it was by the…somewhat unexpected and erratic behavior of the Velvet Room itself that we all found ourselves here. I can only assume that this gentleman is correct, and that something terrible and perhaps wonderful must be waiting for you just around the corner. I might even suggest that this inexplicable culture festival is an important stepping stone on the path to your destiny!"

"Destiny?" Fuuka looked alarmed. "Oh my."

"You mean to say," said Mitsuru, narrowing her eyes at Elizabeth, "that there is some deeper reason why we find ourselves in this…place? We were called here for some greater purpose?"

"That," agreed Elizabeth placidly, "is what I said, yes."

Mitsuru did not look pleased.

"Whatever," grunted Shinjiro. "I don't know about this destiny crap, but Aki's right about one thing. Whatever's waiting for us, let's finish it off before it comes after us. Coming, leader?"

He started forward through the doors, and Makoto fell quickly into step alongside him.'

"Leader, huh?" She winked at him. "Wow, I think that's the first time you've ever called me that, senpai. I guess you're starting to get used to me after all, huh?"

Shinjiro didn't even glance in her direction, and she laughed.

"Just a moment!" Before Makoto and Shinjiro had a chance to get much farther, Theodore was hurrying after them.

"Huh?" Shinjiro turned and frowned at him. "What's up?"

"If you'll excuse me," murmured Theodore, giving Shinjiro a polite little bow, "I wish to request that your leader consider accompanying me back to the Velvet Room. I believe it is important that we inspect the Room for signs of any damage…and in the process, of course, we might discover something interesting about our journey here. What do you say? Will you join me, Makoto-san?"

Theodore held out a hand to Makoto, and Shinjiro narrowed his eyes at Theodore.

"What," muttered Shinjiro, "can't you take care of that shit yourself?"

Makoto smiled at Theodore, and accepted his hand.

"Yeah," she said, "I'll come with you. You're right, I think checking out the Velvet Room is a good idea. Sorry, senpai."

Shinjiro scowled.

"A good leader should be with her team," he reminded her pointedly.

"I know," agreed Makoto smoothly. "I'll be right back. I promise."

"Come on, Shinji." Akihiko grabbed Shinjiro by the shoulder and started out into the festival. "Catch up with us later, alright, leader?"

"Right," agreed Makoto. "Have fun! Try not to break anything, senpais."

It was only as she watched the others trooping out into the midst of the noisy throng of students that Makoto frowned to herself, realizing that something didn't feel quite right.

 _Why the hell,_ she wondered, _are they all calling me 'leader' all of a sudden? Pretty sure the only person who's ever used that name before is Junpei, and it's usually when he's being pissy or making fun of me in Tartarus. That's…I mean, isn't this a little bit weird? Oh well._

She strode back into the Velvet Room on Theodore's heels…and discovered that everything was absolutely not the way it had been before.

"Oh," murmured Theodore. "Oh…oh my."

For one thing, the Velvet Room definitely wasn't an elevator anymore. Instead, it had bright blue staircases extending from ceiling to floor in several places, and there were two large blue doors against one wall, each of them held shut with two unnecessarily large, glowing locks.

"Yeah," mumbled Makoto to herself, echoing a joke Junpei had made earlier. "Yeah, we are definitely not in Kansas anymore."

"I…I've never seen anything like it," whispered Theodore ecstatically, darting around the room and peering at everything in turn. "What could it possibly mean?"

While Theodore continued to examine the room, Makoto headed over to the two large doors, then grabbed one of them and tried to pull it open, with no result.

Squaring her shoulders, she pushed her back against the door, shoving as hard as she could. Again, the door didn't budge.

"Interesting," murmured Theodore as Makoto straightened up again, breathing a bit harder than before. "It appears that these doors are made some immensely heavy substance that resists even the efforts of our illustrious guest."

Makoto turned on him. "Hey," she suggested, "care to give it a try?"

"I would never presume," returned Theodore smoothly, "to attempt a feat of physical strength where my guest has tried and failed."

"You're much stronger than I am," retorted Makoto.

"You flatter me," murmured Theodore, inclining his head at her.

Makoto gave up.

"We'd better go back," she sighed. "I guess we owe the others the bad news."

"Of course," agreed Theodore. "After you. I insist."

With Makoto leading, they returned to the hallway of the "culture festival" where they'd originally parted with the others. Most everyone seemed to be back already, and not a one of them looked particularly happy.

"Ah," announced Aigis as Theodore and Makoto joined the group. "You've returned, leader. Have you discovered anything?"

"You first," retorted Makoto. "What did you guys find out?"

"It's not good news," mumbled Shinjiro. "Looks like we're stuck here. I tried leaving the school, but as soon as I walked through the front doors, I ended up back here in this hallway, somehow."

"Yeah," agreed Akihiko. "I tried jumping the fence, but that didn't work either. I just showed up right back here, like Shinji said."

"You jumped the fence?" Mitsuru raised an eyebrow at him.

"Yeah," muttered Shinjiro. "He sure did. We're just lucky there weren't any teachers lurking around. Jeez…"

"Something's kinda…not right about this place," added Junpei. "I mean, the kids here are sorta weird. I tried talking to them, but it' s like they weren't even listening."

"Oh yeah?" Yukari snorted a laugh. "What's so weird about that? I never listen when you talk."

Junpei shot her a dirty look, but went on with his story.

"I asked one guy, 'hey, how's it going?' He turned and grinned at me in this kinda creepy way, and said 'this festival's a lot of fun!' Then I asked him, 'so, where are we, exactly,' and he just said the exact same thing! 'This festival's a lot of fun!'" I couldn't get him to say anything else, either. Weird, right?"

"The name of this school is printed on several banners in this hallway," noted Aigis. "The school appears to be called 'Yasogami High.'"

"Yasogami High, huh?" Shinjiro was chewing thoughtfully on his lip. "Feel like I've heard that name before somewhere."

"In any case," insisted Mitsuru, waving that away with one dismissive hand, "what concerns me the most is that this 'Yasogami High' seems entirely too well-contained. If neither Akihiko nor Shinjiro were able to secure an exit, then I suppose our only way out would be back through the Velvet Room, the way we came in."

"I…regret to inform you," said Theodore, smiling apologetically, "that leaving by way of the Velvet Room won't be possible. Your leader and I have just examined the remains of the Velvet Room, and we have determined that its properties have entirely changed. I'm afraid that it will be out of commission for some time…possibly forever."

"Wha…FOREVER?" Yukari's mouth fell open in shock. "You can't be serious!"

"That…may have been something of an exaggeration," murmured Theodore gently, "but for the moment, at least, an exit is certainly not possible by that route. There are, we've discovered, two large doors now present in the Velvet Room, but your leader has already made every effort to open them, and they remain stubbornly shut."

"They're locked," clarified Makoto.

"Figures," mumbled Shinjiro.

Akihiko just grinned. "This gets more and more exciting by the second," he announced.

Mitsuru shot him a disgusted look. "Akihiko, please."

Aigis only shook her head.

"If I understand the situation correctly," she began slowly, "then we are trapped here, indefinitely, with no means of an exit that is immediately apparent. Is that correct?"

Makoto shrugged. "Seems that way," she agreed.

For a moment, everyone was silent, apparently taking it all in.

"So, then," began Ken hesitantly. "What…what are we supposed to do, now?"

Everyone immediately turned to look at Makoto.

"Yeah, leader," agreed Junpei. "What's next?"

Makoto sighed.

"Why the hell," she asked, "is everyone calling me 'leader?' Did you all forget my name, or something?'"

* * *

**Author's End Note:**

7:45 PM here, and the snow continues to fall.

These characters are remarkably fun to write…I'd almost forgotten. They're Persona Q incarnations are even sillier and more upbeat than their original P3P manifestations were.

I've gotta go to the gym and get a few pages written for my writer's workshop on Monday, but I may, just maybe, have a chance to churn out another chapter later.


	3. Chapter Two

**Author's Note:** Okay, so I just reached the point in the game where Rise lays some serious truth on Yukari about friendship and wanting to be understood. I was so proud of Rise, whom I normally don't much like. Maybe she's growing on me.

I also think that that scene, and that interaction is going to be very, very different in this story. See, I've always felt that the major difference between the male protagonist and the female protagonist in P3P is that the female protagonist makes closer friendships with all of her party members, brings them all together and connects with them emotionally on a much deeper level than the male protagonist ever does. It's one of the reasons I prefer her route, and I think that's going to come into play in this story in a big way.

It might even end up being the point of this story.

Anyway, time to stop philosophizing now. I should write instead. Maybe I'll even pull a writer-all-nighter!

Oh lord, I'm going stir-crazy. We're still snowed in, and they're saying we're gonna be stuck here until WEDNESDAY.

Please, leave me some reviews. Send me some PMs. Anything. My best friend's incredibly sick and she's out of contact, my fiancé is essential personnel at his work…and I desperately need someone to talk to.

* * *

**Chapter Two**

"So…allow me to sum up," muttered Mitsuru, shaking her head. "We cannot get out. We cannot go back the way we came in, and this place is…"

"Dangerous!" Suddenly, Fuuka went rigid, looking startled and wary again. "Mitsuru-senpai was right, everyone! There are definitely shadows here! I can sense them, only…" She frowned, and trailed off. "Only, I'm not so sure exactly where they are. They're somewhere…far below, I think. Down deep…deep below us. No, I'm sorry, I'm not making sense, am I?"

"Heh." Akihiko smiled grimly. "So it's like the opposite of Tartarus, right? Instead of going up, this time, we've gotta go down."

"Down?" Ken didn't look convinced. "Down…where? Like, downstairs? I think we're on the second floor, so-?"

"Um, no, that's not it," insisted Fuuka. "It's not downstairs. It's…deeper than that. Much deeper. Oh, I can't really explain…" She looked frustrated with herself. "I'm sorry, everyone."

"It's not your fault," muttered Shinjiro. "Ain't nobody sure what's going on here. Anyway, standing around isn't getting us anywhere. Let's go check out the area…but be careful and don't try anything stupid," he added looking directly at Akihiko.

"Jeez," sighed Akihiko, grinning. "Spoil all my fun, why don'tcha?"

"As I said before," announced Elizabeth, "that is an excellent idea. Theodore and I will return to the Velvet Room. Please feel free to call on is you require any further assistance."

"Huh? Wait, you're not coming with us?" Yukari stared. "But, that's not fair!"

"Yeah," agreed Junpei. "Aren't you the reason we ended up here in the first place?"

Theodore gently shook his head.

"As we have already attempted to explain," he said quietly, "this Velvet Room is tied inexorably to the fate of your leader. It is her, and not we, who have opened up this particular path to your destiny. We as residents of the Velvet Room can only watch and assist when possible. We cannot guide you down the right path."

"You must move forward without hesitation," sighed Elizabeth dramatically, "with your heads held high, never wavering as you travel in the direction destiny leads!"

"Uh, that's…" Junpei looked doubtful. He turned to look at Makoto, and she just shrugged.

"Yeah," she said, answering the question he hadn't asked. "They are always like this…or at least, Theo is. Anyway, senpai's right. Let's get going. Last one to the shadows is a rotten old octopus!"

Without giving the others a chance to argue, she turned on her heel and strode off down the hall, ignoring Mitsuru's irritated remonstrations. Moments later, Akihiko and Koromaru were at her side, and then they all came up short in front of a festival display that was garishly brightly colored and festooned with all kinds of pom-poms and tree-shaped decorations. There was a little white rabbit statue standing in front of a door, and above the door was a hand-colored sign that read "You in Wonderland; Let's Alice!"

"That's…that's not a sentence," sighed Mitsuru, her heels clicking against the floor as she finally caught up to them. "Such an amateurish display."

"Oh, is this an Alice in Wonderland exhibit?" Yukari looked doubtful.

"That doesn't sound so bad," remarked Ken, perking up a little bit. "It's a kid's book, right?"

"Uh, well, sort of?" Yukari shrugged. "It's…honestly kind of creepy for a kid's book. There's all kinds of weird creatures and stuff in that story."

Ken's face fell. "O-oh…I see."

Fuuka sighed happily. "I LOVE Alice in Wonderland," she remarked. "I've got both of the books on my shelf at the dorm. They're a lot of fun!"

"There's a…certain appeal," muttered Yukari noncommittally. "Not my thing, really, but I guess it's fine if you like that kind of story."

"I did an Alice in Wonderland cosplay once, back in middle school," volunteered Makoto.

"Oh, yeah?" Junpei's eyes gleamed. "You and every other girl, right? Oh, but I bet it was super cute when you did it. Did you go for the knee-high lace stockings and the cute little flouncy skirt look? Man, I can totally see it now…"

Makoto snorted a laugh.

"I was the Mad Hatter," she informed him. "So no, not exactly."

"Wha-whaaaaaat?" Junpei looked deeply disappointed. "Wait, what the hell's that all about? That's not a sexy costume at all!"

"Who says I wasn't sexy?" Makoto raised a challenging eyebrow at him. "Maybe I rocked the hat. You don't know."

"Uh, more importantly," added Yukari, "why are you thinking dirty thoughts about a middle school girl's costume anyway? Ew, Stupei. That's…I mean that's low, even for you. How old were you, Makoto? Thirteen? Sheesh."

Koromaru growled.

"Koromaru-san says," translated Aigis, "that you have crossed a line, Junpei-san."

"Sounds like you're being more of a dog than he is, Junpei" quipped Akihiko.

Shinjiro just rolled his eyes.

"I'm going in," he announced, turning his back on the others and starting towards the "You in Wonderland" display. "If you're coming with me, don't take all day about it."

"Hey, Shinji!" Akihiko rushed forward. "Wait for me!"

As Junpei started forward, Makoto leaned in and whispered sweetly in his ear.

"For all you know," she murmured, with just a hint of malicious glee in her voice, "maybe I wore nothing BUT the hat."

Junpei's eyes widened in shock and his jaw dropped open. Makoto didn't even try to hold in her laughter as she turned to join the others.

"S-stop!" Suddenly, an unfamiliar voice called out from behind them, and they all spun around again to find themselves faced with two students they hadn't noticed before. One was taller, dressed all in black with a spiked collar and a tattered cape over his Yasogami High school uniform. The other, a smaller blond girl with pink cheeks and a pleasant face, looked distant and distinctly unhappy.

"Don't go," she whispered, shaking her head emphatically. "There's monsters in there. Please don't go…"

"Rei," muttered the boy beside her, placing a protective hand on her shoulder. The girl's trembling abated ever so slightly.

"Monsters, huh?" Akihiko shrugged. "Just like we figured."

"Hey," insisted Junpei, "who are you guys? Wait, you can…you can talk to us? You can see us?"

"Huh?" The girl looked confused. "Of course we can see you. Um…can you see me?"

"We can," replied Mitsuru crisply. "I take it, then, that you are...people of the real world, like ourselves. Are you students at this school?"

The girl and the boy exchanged a quick look, then nodded at each other.

"That's right," agreed the boy.

"Uh-huh," mumbled the girl. "We're, um, students at this school. Sure."

Something about the girl's answer didn't sound quite right to Makoto.

 _That was maybe the least confident response I've ever heard,_ thought Makoto, frowning. _I mean, is she a student here, or not? It's not a super difficult question…_

No one else, however, seemed to have noticed the uncertainty in the girl's voice, except for Aigis, who was now peering at her with a very strange, wondering look in her mechanical eyes.

"Tell us, please," begged Yukari. "Where are we? Where this place, and what is are we doing here? Wait, what are YOU doing here? Did you fall here, just like we did?"

"Fall…here?" The girl frowned.

"We don't know," admitted the boy.

"You…wait, you don't know?" Junpei narrowed his eyes at them. "Hey, how's that even possible? Either you fell here, or you didn't, right?"

"We don't know," repeated the girl. "I'm sorry, but…um…that's all I can say."

"Maybe they aren't so 'real' after all," sighed Mitsuru. "How disappointing."

"They don't act like shadows," remarked Akihiko, frowning.

"W-wait!" The girl sounded desperate, now. "No, I'm not a…a shadowthing. I'm real, too! I'm really real! I'm real just like you and everybody else, right, Zen?"

"If you don't mind me asking," said the boy calmly, "what exactly do you mean by 'shadows?'"

Yukari sighed.

"Let's back up," she suggested, "okay? Um, I'm Yukari. What are your names?"

Again, the boy and the girl shared a quick glance before answering.

"My name," said the boy eventually, "is Zen. This is Rei. At least…those are the names we call each other."

"Huh?" Fuuka looked confused. "The names you call each other?"

"You say," continued Zen, "that you 'fell' here. We did not 'fall' anywhere. This is the place that we came to when we first regained consciousness. That is, unfortunately, everything that I know. I remember nothing else."

Now, it was Yukari and Fuuka's turn to share a startled look.

"Wait," began Yukari slowly, "you don't remember anything? As in…you lost your memories?"

"Nuh-uh." Rei shook her head. "They were taken from us. I know that. I know…that someone took them."

"But, you don't remember WHO took them, huh?" Shinjiro raised a doubtful eyebrow at Rei, but she just shook her head.

"We remember nothing," clarified Zen, unhelpfully.

Shinjiro sighed. "Lot of good that does us, then."

"I can only assume, therefore," said Mitsuru, sounding tired, "that you do not know the way out of here either."

"Out?" Rei suddenly perked up a little bit. "You're…you're going to get out?"

"Uh, well yeah," muttered Yukari. "I mean, we have to go home."

Suddenly, Rei grabbed onto Zen's sleeve and stared directly into his eyes.

"I want to go home too," she said earnestly. "Zen, I want to go home too…can we 'get out?' Please? Oh, please, Zen, can we go home with the others?"

Zen frowned for a moment, obviously perplexed. He opened his mouth as though to speak, then shut it firmly again, shook his head as if to clear it, and shrugged.

"If that is what you wish, Rei," he said quietly. "We will go…home as well."

"Awesome," announced Makoto, smiling encouragingly at them both. "That's perfect, actually. We've got the same goal, so we might as well join forces, right?"

"We cannot take them into that…exhibit," Mitsuru reminded her. "If there are indeed shadows in there, as Yamagishi suggested, then it would be irresponsible to endanger the lives of anyone unable to combat the shadows. I take it that the two of you do not wield personas?"

"Person…what?" Rei looked puzzled.

"No," muttered Zen, "we do not have these 'personas.' I have never heard of them before. I can say, however, that if the monsters in that place are what you call 'shadows,' then I can fight them."

"Uh," began Yukari, "without personas? You can't be serious. That's-!"

"That's great," interrupted Akihiko. "The more power behind us, the better the outcome…although, I'll admit that it's a little more fun when it's one on one. Oh, well."

Mitsuru shot him a disgusted look.

"Then," asked Zen, "you will let us accompany you? I assure you, you will have no cause to regret it."

"Of course we will," insisted Makoto, holding out her hand to him. "It's just like senpai says; the more the merrier, right? Anyway, it's not like we can just leave you guys alone out here. What kind of monsters do you think we are?"

"M-monsters?" Rei started. "I…I thought you said all the monsters were in THERE."

""It's all right, Rei," insisted Zen. "They aren't monsters. I think."

"You THINK?" Junpei looked insulted. "Hey, come on, now!"

Aigis had apparently finally lost interest in Rei, and had turned her attention back to the "Let's Alice" sign. Makoto strolled over to join her.

"I must admit, leader," murmured Aigis, "that I am not familiar with the complete story of 'Alice in Wonderland.' It is about a little girl who…loses a cat, is it? My programmer failed, I'm afraid, to read past the very first chapter. It did not entertain him, I think."

"Seriously?" Junpei grinned. "Do you only know about books that the guy who programmed you liked? No wonder you're tanking in our literature course. I was kinda wondering about that...I mean, I figured a robot would be pretty smart, but-!"

"Will you please tell me," asked Aigis, looking at Makoto, "how the story ends, Makoto-san?"

Makoto just shrugged and took a step through the entrance of the exhibit.

"Nah, I don't think so," she called over her shoulder. "Why tell you when it looks like you're going to have a chance to find out for yourselves? Coming, Junpei?"

Then she turned around, moved forward again…and was lost, for a dizzying moment, in what felt like a sickening, exhilarating sea of lights and colors.

* * *

 **Author's End Note:** We have now reached the point where our story is going to deviate quite a bit from the story of the Persona Q game. Although the basic framework will be the scene, I think the scenes, episodes, and situations in which our female protagonist finds herself are undoubtedly different from those of the male protagonist.

I'm excited to get started…but first, 500 crunches, 20 squats, 10 suicides and the dishes.


	4. Chapter Three

**Author's Note:** Um so, based on some of the PMs I received after posting the previous chapter, I think some clarification is necessary.

When I said "I have to do 10 suicides," I meant, like, the workout suicides. You know, those kinda painful exercises that are sort of like a fusion of a yoga pose, a squat, and a push-up all at the same time? That's a suicide. That's what I was referring to. No Aris were injured during the creation of this or any other chapter.

Aaaaanyway…

* * *

**Chapter Three**

The inside of the "You in Wonderland" exhibit turned out to be just as horribly representative of the insanity of Alice's Wonderland as Makoto could have imagined. The colors were bright, loud, and jarring, interspersed with nauseating checkerboard patterns that only made the visual environment all the more alarmingly complex. Even the landscape was haphazard, complete with what appeared to be giant books sticking out of the walls at odd angle and immense playing cards hanging from various places in the ceiling.

"Yeah," muttered Ken, nodding slowly to himself. "This…this actually does look kinda like Tartarus, don't you think?"

Akihiko just shrugged.

"In that case," he announced, snapping his fingers, "This'll be a piece of cake."

Ken looked doubtful, but he didn't bother to argue. Shinjiro just rolled his eyes.

While Ken, Koromaru, Shinjiro and Akihiko all went off to the left to examine a huge book that was standing half-open against the wall, Fuuka, Yukari, Aigis and the two newcomers seemed to be distracted by an unusually-colored flowering plant growing up just alongside them. Makoto, Junpei and Mitsuru went on alone for a few paces, then stopped and turned to wait for the others.

"This," announced Junpei unnecessarily, "is weird as hell."

"Not nearly as amateurish on the inside as I'd have expected from the poorly constructed sign over the door," murmured Mitsuru thoughtfully. "Whoever was responsible for constructing this environment deserves some admiration."

"Huh." Junpei chewed on his lip for a moment, turning that one over. "So, do you think that whoever built this place is the same as whoever built Tartarus? Who, uh…who was that, again? Or, wait, did the shadows make it themselves? Now I'm just confusing myself."

Mitsuru sighed.

"There are still many things," she muttered, "that we have yet to understand. At times, it becomes almost maddening."

Makoto grinned.

"That's kind of the point of Alice and Wonderland, isn't it?" She shrugged. "There's this great line in the famous tea party scene where the Mad Hatter says, 'we're all mad, here.' This looks like exactly the sort of place a bunch of insane architects might have come up with."

"You're not wrong," murmured Mitsuru. "Watch your step, all of you. There's no telling just what further, more dangerous madness we might encounter before too long."

Even as she spoke, something made a thumping, rustling sound from behind the wall just in front of them. Makoto, Mitsuru and Junpei all stopped in their tracks and waited for a moment, but the sound did not repeat.

"We should regroup," Mitsuru sighed. "It's unwise for us to be separated at a time like this, when there could be enemies anywhere."

"We separate in Tartarus all the time," Makoto reminded her, but Mitsuru was already off after Fuuka and Yukari, her finger half-raised and her eyes already narrowed in preparation for the admonition that was soon to come.

Junpei sighed.

"I don't know, man," he muttered. "Mitsuru-senpai's so damn serious all the time that it's probably bad for her health, you know what I mean? I mean, yeah, I get it, but-!"

"She's not always like that," interrupted Akihiko, striding over to them with Shinjiro a few steps behind.

"Oh, yeah?" Junpei raised an eyebrow, obviously unconvinced.

Akihiko scowled at him.

"Yeah," he muttered. "She's not some kind of robot, okay? It's just…Mitsuru's got it hard. She's under a lot of stress."

Makoto glanced idly over at Aigis, the robot, who was now in the process of delightedly stroking an equally pleased-looking Koromaru, both of them looking completely relaxed.

"Try not to make it worse for her," added Akihiko, "by being an idiot, got it?

Junpei just shrugged. "Yeah, yeah," he said. "I got it. Still, don't you think it'd be a good thing for her to get out and about for a change?"

"She's always out doing stuff," countered Akihiko.

"Yeah, I know," agreed Junpei, "but I mean, like, it'd be good for her to get out and have some real fun. She should do some things that aren't either all about work or the shadows. All work and no play drives any student nuts, right?"

"We're all mad here," muttered Makoto under her breath, but nobody paid her any attention.

"Well…" Akihiko seemed to be considering that, still frowning. "I…guess I see your point, but-!"

"So," asked Makoto curiously, "what about you, senpai? What do _you_ like to do for fun? I mean, when you're not training."

"Uh…" Akihiko gave her a blank, uncertain sort of look.

Makoto envisioned the countless number of times that she'd seen Akihiko running, lifting, or standing in the back of the library doing some kind of complicated squat-pushups after school, and reminded herself that she shouldn't make assumptions. There might actually never be a time when Akihiko wasn't training.

"Nevermind," she sighed, flashing him a weary sort of smile. "Forget I asked."

"We…really need to do some more fun stuff as a dorm," mumbled Junpei, shaking his head in disgust. "You guys have got this being a teenager thing all wrong. You're gonna be old before you're old, senpai! I just hope it's not too late already. Oh, hey, like when we went to Yakushima! That was pretty fun, am I right? We gotta do more laid back stuff like that."

Makoto thought back to the night they'd spent in the Kirijo mansion at Yakushima, and winced.

 _Not the best example,_ she thought. _After all, that just turned out to be a kind of business trip, anyway…and I bet Yukari doesn't remember having too much 'fun' while she was there._

"He likes movies," said Shinjiro unexpectedly, speaking up for the first time.

"Hmm?" Makoto frowned. "Who does, senpai?"

"Aki," muttered Shinjiro, jerking his head in Akihiko's direction. "They're all action movies, obviously, but he uses them to unwind, sometimes. It's the closest he ever comes to doing something that doesn't involve punching shit."

"Hey," retorted Akihiko, "it's all to help improve my training regimen. Some of the moves that they have those stunt actors do are incredible. Have you seen 'Thunder Cliffs?' I'm still working on getting the hang of that backflip double-roll with the dragon punch at the end, but it's hard to get my legs up that high in the air while throwing the left-handed punch at the same time. It takes a lot of co-ordination."

Shinjiro snorted a derisive laugh. "The hell do you need to do that stupid shit for, anyway? A good straight-on hit to the jaw is usually more than enough. Keep it simple, stupid."

Akihiko glared.

"Yeah?" He grinned maliciously at his long-time friend, then turned his attention back to Makoto and Junpei. "Well, Shinji here has a thing for animals."

"Uh, yeah," muttered Junpei, unimpressed. "We, uh, could have guessed."

"He cried like three times during 'Black Beauty,' and even a few times during'Flipper,'" continued Akihiko mercilessly.

"What?" Shinjiro's jaw dropped and he flushed aggressively. "Like hell I did! Why would you even-?"

"Wait, wait," insisted Makoto, genuinely shocked. "You've actually seen 'Flipper?' Like, voluntarily?"

"That's…unexpected," mumbled Junpei. "But hey, I mean, it takes all kinds to make a world, or something."

Shinjiro just set his jaw and glowered at them each in turn. Makoto couldn't help but think that the combination of embarrassment and mounting righteous rage in his eyes was kind of cute, in a way.

"Remember, Shinji, how you wanted to be a vet when you were growing up?" Akihiko had that old, relentlessly teasing tone in his voice again, the way he so often did when he got the pleasure of spending any prolonged period of time with Shinjiro. "You still thinking about doing that, or have the plans changed now that you never feel like showing up to school anymore?"

Shinjiro's glare only darkened, and he turned away.

"Shaddup," he snarled. "Come on, the others are waiting."

Without another word, Shinjiro strode off in the direction that Mitsuru had gone. Akihiko, now looking slightly uncomfortable, as though regretting how far he'd d taken his joke, hurried off after him.

"That," said Junpei after a moment, "was…kinda awkward."

"Yep," agreed Makoto.

"You know, we really do need to all get out have some fun," Junpei went on, returning doggedly to his earlier theme. "You can see it too, right? Just check out how tense everybody is all the time. Shinjiro-senpai always looks like he's about to bite somebody's head off."

"I think that's just his face," suggested Makoto, but Junpei didn't really appear to be listening.

"We should all get together," he insisted, warming readily to the subject, "and see if we can find a way to get everybody to have fun, whether they want to or not. We'll have to combine everybody's interests, or something. It'll be one, big, awesome outing that'll help us all relax. What do you think?"

Makoto frowned and considered that for a moment.

"Well," she hazarded eventually, "if we're trying to put something together that combines everyone's interests, then we could…maybe have something outside, maybe at the park? We could bring my laptop out and have an outdoor movie screening. What was that movie senpai mentioned? Thunder Cliffs?"

"Uh, yeah," mumbled Junpei. "I…actually, it sounds terrible. I can only imagine the kind of shit he probably watches. I figure it's gotta be some kind of macho sausage fest. Ugh."

"Sounds like fun," retorted Makoto. "What's wrong with a movie about a bunch of attractive bodybuilders?"

Male bodybuilders," Junpei reminded her. "All male…you see my point? That's just not gonna work for _everybody_ on our team, okay?"

Makoto ignored him.

"We'd have a movie on the green," she went on thoughtfully, "or something, and that'd give Koromaru plenty of place to play, and you know how much Shinjiro-senpai loves taking Koro-chan out for walks. Oh, and we could cook a big picnic meal, too. Everybody likes eating, and Fuuka loves to cook."

"Wait…this is starting to sound kinda dangerous," returned Junpei. "You have tasted Fuuka's cooking, right? Right, of course you have, you guys are in cooking club together. What are you trying to do to our stomachs? I'm gonna have to say…no. I'll give you an A for effort, though. Try again; gimme something else."

Makoto sighed.

"Okay," she said. "Then, do you have a better idea?"

Junpei nodded slowly, his eyes glinting with sudden malicious delight.

"I am so glad you asked," he said, grinning.

 _Uh oh,_ thought Makoto. _What's he planning this time?_

"I was just thinking a little earlier," he went on casually, "about how much fun it'd be if you showed us that cosplay you were talking about a few minutes ago. You know, your 'Alice in Wonderland' dressup? I mean, I had no idea you were into that kinda thing, but now that the truth's out, I figure it'd be fun if you maybe-!"

"No," interrupted Makoto.

"Aw, come on," insisted Junpei. "Don't you think it'd be a great way for everybody to unwind? Hey, we could get Yuka-tan and Fuuka in on it, too! The more the merrier, am I right?"

"No," repeated Makoto, raising an eyebrow at him. "You're not right."

Junpei, however, was not quite ready to give up.

"Are you sure?" He frowned. "Because I think Akihiko-senpai and Shinjiro-senpai would get a huge kick of seeing you in that Mad Hatter outfit. I mean…I don't know if you were kidding about wearing 'just the hat,' but-!"

"I said, NO." Makoto grabbed her naginata and took a swipe at him, giving him just enough space to jump back and get out of the way in time.

"Whoa!" Junpei's jaw dropped. "Hey, hey, come on, man, you know I was just kidding! Jeez…"

Makoto snorted a laugh and the put weapon away, while Junpei took a deep breath and shook his head at her.

"Where the hell," he asked, "did that thing even come from? Quick-draw Maka-tan, that's what we should call you. Can't you take a joke?"

He grinned at her to take the sting out of his words, and Makoto smiled defiantly back at him until they were both on the verge of laughter.

"I don't know, though," sighed Junpei eventually. "I mean…if we're not gonna do the cosplay party, then I'm fresh out of ideas. This shouldn't be that hard, right?"

"Maybe we just don't know everyone well enough," suggested Makoto gently. "It's hard to plan a party when you're not really sure what everyone's going to like."

"Yeah," agreed Junpei, nodding. "Yeah, that's…that's probably it. We live in the same dorm, and all, but I guess it's just weird because most of what we do together is fighting shadows. What are we supposed to do for down time?"

Makoto shrugged.

"Don't worry," she said, shaking her head and giving him a wry sort of smile. "I'm sure that we'll have plenty of time to get to know everybody while we find our way out of this mess."

"Right," agreed Junpei. "Yeah, come to think of it, how big do you think this place is? Might go on forever…uh, no, nevermind, let's not even start thinking that way. Stay positive, right? Stay…stay positive."

"Hey, you two!" Mitsuru was calling for them. Makoto looked over and realized that Mitsuru and the others had all gone on ahead, and were now standing in front of some sort of giant checkerboard structure that might have been a door.

"We'd better go," Makoto told Junpei.

"Yep," sighed Junpei. "Duty calls…or something."

As Makoto and Junpei started off after the rest of the team, Makoto took a quick glance over her shoulder at the bizarre books and the strange trees.

 _No matter how long we spend here together, though,_ she thought, frowning to herself, _won't it all just be more fighting? Junpei's not wrong…we need more than that. We need...to understand each other, if we're going to be a great team. It takes more than just battling together to really know someone. I wonder if we'll ever have the opportunity. What happens, anyway, after we finally save the world? Do we just all go our separate ways like nothing happened? I had sort of started to think that maybe…maybe we were all going to be friends._

The thought was a sad and confusing one, and sat uncomfortably in the pit of Makoto's stomach as she, Junpei, and everyone else collected around the large checkerboard door.

"All right," suggested Mitsuru, eyeing the door suspiciously. "Yuuki, you're in charge, here. What do you suggest we do next?"

Makoto sighed, then immediately took a deep breath, turned on one of her brightest smiles, and pulled out her naginata again.

"I suggest," she said, taking a step forward, "that we get ready for some action."

She reached out, pressed the door, and watched it slowly open up in front of her.

"Here we go," muttered Akihiko.

Makoto glanced over her shoulder, and found all of her comrades…no, her _friends_ grimacing with weapons at the ready, prepared, as it were, for war.

* * *

 **Author's End Note:** It's interesting to see exactly where this game falls in the timeline. The typhoon comes right at the point in the game where everyone is starting to get to know each other, but where there's still not a ton of trust to go around. It's also at the point where I think the party social links you can possibly have maxed out are Junpei's and Yukari's. I think everybody else you're either halfway through, or you haven't started them yet, so there's a lot of friendships that have still to fully form.

Anyway, we'll see that reflected in the story, here. A fascinating place to put a character-driven story about developing bonds. I'm getting more and more into this…


End file.
